Chapter 5 - The Conversation

Focus.

Focus, Matt.

Focus.

Matt kept repeating that word in his head as he stared at the syllabus in front of him, trying to only focus on it. Or else, just like that Saturday afternoon, the only thing he could do was staring at his professor all the time, the professor who was going over the syllabus and other things like grades.

He constantly told himself to be like his friends and other classmates, who were all good students and listening to Professor Angevine's words attentively. Of course, there were still some girls who were like him, getting sidetracked and not caring about anything except looking at their professor, but that wasn't the point here.

Matt still couldn't believe that this was actually happening. The handsome customer he met that afternoon was his own professor of all people. Up until this point of time, he was still wondering about whether this was a good thing or not. His head started thinking about the pros and cons of this situation. For some reason, his mind immediately went to the negative side, probably because his high school self just decided to return at this very moment.

Firstly, he would get distracted, seriously distracted. Because it was just the first day of class and he was already tuning out, staring at Professor Angevine's eyes and listening to his angelic voice. At this rate, he wouldn't be able to learn or get anything done in class, or even at his dorm, since his mind would just be filled with his professor's image.

Secondly, not only would he get distracted, but he would also have many unnecessary questions and thoughts in his mind. He would possibly spend his time thinking about his feelings. This wasn't a student crushing on another student. This was a student crushing on his college professor, for crying out loud, so it wasn't as simple. In fact, it was ten times more troubling. Most professors, as far as he knew, weren't comfortable enough to date their students, even after they had graduated. But even if they had been okay with it, the relationship between them and their students would be pretty complicated, as they had to keep their relationship professional on campus at all time.

And lastly, this wasn't related to the teacher-student relationship, but more related to Matt's professor himself. Finding a partner as a gay male was hard enough for Matt, let alone confessing his feelings to his own professor, who he was going to see until he finished this course. What if Professor Angevine didn't return his feelings and then it became awkward every time Matt attended his class? When that happened, he couldn't just choose another professor, because it would be impossible to do so.

More terribly, what if Professor Angevine disliked gay people, leading to him disliking Matt as well? Matt had already made a good impression on his professor, so he couldn't let his effort all go to waste.

Well, just from the first glance and there had been multiple difficulties already.

But Matt soon thought of the good things this situation could offer. The first advantage of this was, obviously, that he got to meet Professor Angevine regularly, which would probably give him the motivation not to skip class. Well, it wasn't like he skipped class a lot—it was quite the opposite. The thing was, there were days he didn't want to even get out of bed. Therefore, with his crush as his professor, he would have something to encourage him to go to class on days he felt tired and lazy.

The second advantage was that he had more chances to talk to his professor and discuss about what students usually discussed with their professors, such as assignments, classes, papers, and so on.

And third advantage was...

...

Um...

Uh... the third one was...

...

Matt knew he was screwed when there were only two good things among thousands of bad ones about this mess he had found himself in.

...__________...

"Do any of you have any question?"

Professor Angevine's question pulled Matt out of his thoughts, making him realize that it was the end of the class. It was a good thing that he had been trying to listen carefully, most of the time at least, otherwise he would have had no idea about what today's lecture was even about. And if he asked his friends to explain everything to him again, they would immediately know that he wasn't paying attention throughout the whole class, which was quite embarrassing.

When no one asked anything, Professor Angevine nodded. "Alright, class dismissed!"

Everyone started leaving the classroom, including Matt. He was walking with his friends when one of his pens slipped from his hand and rolled down the stairs. Without giving it a second thought, Matt ran after it, completely unaware of the direction it was going in.

Having reached his pen, he crouched down to pick it up, but he didn't expect to see another hand also reaching for it and accidentally brushing against his own. It wasn't until he looked up that he realized his pen had led him to his professor's podium, and the said professor was now locking eyes with him with their hands touching.

"Ah!" Matt yelped as he pulled his hand back. "I'm, I'm, I'm so sorry, professor!"

"It's okay, Matthew," Professor Angevine said, standing up simultaneously with Matt. "Here, your pen."

"Th-Thank you, professor." Matt shyly took his pen back, being reminded of their first meeting at the coffee shop when his professor paid for his latte. "I've done so many embarrassing things today, haven't I?"

"Embarrassing?" The professor raised his eyebrow as he chuckled. "I don't think so."

"B-But..." Matt hesitated, "I interrupted your class a while back, didn't I?"

"I told you, you shouldn't be ashamed of it. I really think your math skills are incredible." Professor Angevine smiled. "And I wasn't just trying to save you from embarrassment."

"Th-Thank you so much, professor."

Matt was blushing again, and he desperately hoped that his cheeks weren't so red that it was noticeable. By now, every student had left the classroom, so it was just him and his professor, who also happened to be his crush. They had stood in front of each other like this when they first met that Saturday afternoon, but Matt wasn't this close to him because of the counter between them. So now, when they were literally standing just inches away from one another, it just made Matt felt ten times more nervous.

A few seconds had passed and his professor didn't seem like he had anything else to say, so Matt figured that it was time for him to utter the words he didn't want to utter. He didn't want to let this moment end, but he had to.

"Well, I have to go now, professor. Have a nice day!"

Matt turned away, ready to take his leave when his professor's voice was heard, stopping him in his tracks.

"Matthew, wait!"

"Yes, professor?"

Professor Angevine hesitated for a while before speaking up again, scratching the back of his neck. "Wh-What day do you have work?"

Completely ignoring the fact that his professor was stuttering, Matt raised an eyebrow at the other man. "What do you mean, professor?"

"What day do you have work at Grandhaven Coffee?"

Matt gasped quietly, startled by the fact that his professor remembered.

"Don't you work there, Matthew?" his professor asked again when he received no response from him. "I-If you don't, then I'm sorry, I must've—"

"N-No, professor! I really work there, it's just—" Matt was trying his best to get his words right. "I, I didn't think you'd remember that!"

"Well, to tell you the truth..." Professor Angevine placed his hand on the back of his neck. "When you yelled out loud a while back, I thought I recognized your voice. I didn't think it was really you."

Matt was truly in shock. He really wasn't expecting his professor to remember that he was a barista at that coffee shop. He really was not. Just when he was thinking that Professor Angevine had already forgotten about him.

"I was surprised to find out that you're one of my students. It's... a nice surprise, actually," Professor Angevine continued. "Because I really love the latte you made for me that day. I want to know what day you have work so that I can buy one from you again."

There was no way Matt's cheeks weren't turning beet red. Receiving so many compliments from his favorite professor in just one morning was too much.

"W-Well, I work on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday every week."

"Oh, so that's why I couldn't see you." Professor Angevine chuckled. "I came on Wednesday and Sunday, the exact two days you don't have any shift. Silly me."

Matt, once again, found himself speechless. "Y-You actually wanted to see me?"

"Yes, absolutely." Through that genuine smile, Matt could tell that his professor wasn't lying. "So, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, right?"

"Yes, professor." Matt nodded. "I'll see you at the shop then!"

"I'm looking forward to it," his professor said. "Say, am I holding you back from going somewhere?"

"No, but my friends are probably waiting for me."

"Then I think you should go now." Professor Angevine glanced at the doors as he spoke. "They must've waited long enough."

"Then I'll get going then. Have a nice day, professor!"

"Thank you, Matthew. You too."

After finally bidding goodbye, Matt turned and proceeded to walk away with clumsy steps. His mind was still fuzzy and his heart was beating rapidly after the conversation with his professor, whose gaze Matt could feel following him as he headed out of the room.

He couldn't believe that he had managed to do it. He had managed to have a normal conversation with his professor without messing up. Being able to stand so close to him without anyone around was just another big bonus as well. And god, hearing his own name being said in his professor's deep and beautiful voice was beyond anything else in this world.

He loves my latte, Matt thought, his smile never leaving his face even when he was out of the room.

"Well, hello there, teacher's pet."

Chloe's remark snapped Matt out of his daydream.

"Wh-What did you just call me?"

"Oh, come on, superior." Chloe smirked. "Don't pretend you don't know what us mortals are talking about."

"Chloe, seriously..." Matt raised his eyebrow. "What are these nicknames you're using to call me?"

"Our professor clearly likes you, Matt," said Eve with a huge grin on her face. "He straight up told you that you were smart in front of everyone, right on the first day too!"

"What—No, what are you talking about?" Matt stuttered. "He wasn't giving me special treatment or anything."

"Yes, he was, not to mention he was having a private conversation with you just now!" Ethan pointed to the doors. "But hey, speaking of which, what were you two talking about?"

"N-Nothing." Matt knew this lie was too old now, but what else was he supposed to say?

Chloe leaned forward and stared right into his soul. "You're a terrible liar, Matt."

Matt sweated. He had known Chloe long enough to know that she wasn't going to stop giving him that deadly stare unless he spilled the tea.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***